Homocidal Tendency: A Queer True Crime Podcast

It’s the mid-1970s. Downtown Toronto is caught between the liberation of the disco era and a suffocating, deeply ingrained societal paranoia.  For the men drinking under the glow of the St. Charles Tavern clock tower, the Village is a sanctuary. But sanctuaries are only safe until a predator finds the door. ​This week on Homocidal Tendency , we step into the neon-lit grit of the Yonge Street strip...

In September 1988, the mummified remains of a woman were discovered concealed in Florida’s Green Swamp.  What should have been a standard homicide investigation was instantly derailed by a single, catastrophic scientific error on the autopsy table.  For 37 years, investigators chased a ghost a cisgender mother dubbed "Julie Doe" while the real victim's identity sat locked away in he...

​On the night of March 23, 2004, 31-year-old Kevin Clewer stepped out into the neon-lit sanctuary of Chicago’s Boystown district for a casual Tuesday night of barhopping.  He was charismatic, deeply loved by his community, and completely unaware that a chance meeting with a stranger would shatter his family forever. ​The man went by "Fernando."  By 4:00 AM the next morning, Fernando walk...

This week, we are stepping away from the grim and the gruesome to explore one of the most bizarre, darkly comedic true crime stories in history. ​Meet Steven Jay Russell, the "King Con."  He didn't use shivs, explosives, or violence to beat the Texas justice system.  Armed with a 163 IQ and weaponized confidence, Steven conned his way into a corporate CFO position, embezzled $800,00...

The Freeway Killer Saga Part 3 : Randy Kraft " The Scorecard Killer " The 1970s Southern California hitchhiking culture met its ultimate predator not in a windowless van, but in a pristine Toyota Celica.  In the grand finale of our massive 3-part Freeway Killer Saga, we expose the most sophisticated and deadly of the three phantoms: Randy Steven Kraft. ​ While law enforcement was entirel...

The Freeway Killer Saga - Part 2  William Bonin ​In Part 2 of our Freeway Killer Saga , we track the terrifying escalation of William Bonin.  We explore how a catastrophic failure by a state hospital and a backlogged court system allowed him to transform a pale green Ford Econoline van into a mobile, soundproof slaughterhouse. But Bonin wasn't hunting alone. We dive into the dark psychology o...

The Freeway Killer Saga - Part 1  Patrick Kearney " The Trash Bag Killer " Southern California in the 1970s was a sun-drenched paradise, but its massive, sprawling freeway system became the ultimate hunting ground for a terrifying killer.  In Part 1 of our exclusive 3-part Freeway Killer Saga , Matt dives deep into the chilling mind and methodical crimes of Patrick Kearney the pioneer of...

​If you grew up in the eighties, you know exactly what a bootleg VHS tape looks like.  The tracking is warped, the shadows are pitch black, and the audio sounds completely demonic.  Well, in 1987, Scotland Yard intercepted one of these heavily degraded tapes and immediately launched a multimillion-pound tactical manhunt.  Why? Because they were dead certain they had just uncovered a horrific under...

There is a specific kind of isolation built into the architecture of a Japanese love hotel.  You enter a soundproof room, you pay through frosted glass, and you vanish into the neon-soaked streets.  But in July 2023, the anonymity of Sapporo’s Susukino red-light district was weaponized to hide a flawless, horrifying crime. ​This week on Homocidal Tendency , we are breaking down one of the most twi...

In February 1961, Houston high society violently collided with the city’s underground margins.  What started as a $30 encounter ended with a wealthy real estate tycoon shot six times, doused in high-octane gasoline, and set ablaze in a vacant lot. ​This week on Homocidal Tendency , Matt shifts gears from our recent heavy cases to dive into one of the most absurd, chaotic, and heavily sensationaliz...

In late summer 1997, a gruesome discovery on the quiet shores of Hog Island, Rhode Island, shattered a family’s hope and changed a missing persons investigation into a cold case mystery.  But the severed foot that washed ashore was just the tragic end to a story filled with missed opportunities and institutional betrayal. ​This week on Homocidal Tendency , we rewind six months to follow the timeli...

By day, Virginia’s Colonial Parkway is a scenic, historic drive. By night, in 1986, it was a suffocating, pitch-black trap. ​In Episode 31 of Homocidal Tendency , Matt dives into the heartbreaking and brutal 1986 murders of Cathleen "Cathy" Thomas and Rebecca "Becky" Dowski. As a same-sex couple navigating the rigid, hostile climate of the 1980s, Cathy and Becky sought refuge i...

Washington D.C. is a city built on carefully managed reputations and dangerous secrets.  On February 10, 2015, the pristine public life of high-profile intellectual property lawyer David Messerschmitt collided with a dark, hidden reality.  Found brutally stabbed in Room 400 of the upscale Donovan Hotel, David’s death sent shockwaves through Capitol Hill. ​In this episod  of Homocidal Tendency , we...

What connects a 3:30 AM execution on a freezing Idaho dirt road to a white Dodge Durango abandoned in the Arizona desert nine years later? In the late 90s, Gary and Barbara Loesch were systematically hunted and murdered in Post Falls, Idaho, for a half-million-dollar insurance payout. But the masterminds who orchestrated this brutal conspiracy weren't strangers they were family. ​We untangle...

​The Fourth of July is a celebration of freedom, but in the summer of 1999, one soldier learned that the most dangerous place he could be was in his own barracks, surrounded by his brothers-in-arms. ​In this episode of Homocidal Tendency , Matt dives into the tragic and enraging case of Private First Class Barry Winchell.  Stationed at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Barry was an exemplary infantryman wi...

​What happens when the justice system itself becomes the monster? In Episode 27, we are stepping away from our usual murder cases to uncover one of the most chilling examples of systemic corruption and moral panic in American history: the 1955 Boys of Boise scandal. ​At the height of the Cold War and the Lavender Scare, a single local incident in Boise, Idaho, was weaponized by police, politicians...

A missing two hours. A blood-soaked staircase. A medical paradox that defies the laws of blunt-force trauma. ​In Episode 26 of Homocidal Tendency , we strip away the sensationalism to examine the chilling death of Kathleen Peterson and the ensuing trial of her husband, Michael Peterson. Known globally as "The Staircase" case, this investigation remains one of the most polarizing mysterie...

We just wrapped our mid-season finale with Episode 25, and while I am taking a brief hiatus to recharge the batteries, the feed isn't going dark.  In this special, fast-paced bonus episode of Homocidal Tendency , we plunge into a chilling 1972 cold case that permanently altered the course of history in Australia. ​The drowning of Dr. George Duncan in Adelaide's River Torrens wasn't...

In Episode 25, Matt takes you back to the gritty, neon-lit streets of 1970s New York City to investigate one of the most chilling and frustrating unsolved mysteries in true crime history: The Bag Murders. ​Between 1975 and 1977, the dark waters of the Hudson River surrendered a terrifying secret. Six unidentified victims were discovered along the Greenwich Village waterfront. But how does a serial...

Behind the blinding neon lights, free-flowing champagne, and pulsing techno of the 1980s Paris underground, a predator was using high fashion as camouflage to hunt in plain sight.  This week on Homocidal Tendency , we step off the dance floor of Le Palace and into the quiet, winding stone stairwells of the 18th arrondissement to track one of the most anomalous and terrifying true crime cases in mo...

This week, Matt takes you on a chilling journey into the pristine, frozen passes of 1980s Switzerland a place synonymous with safe neutrality, immense wealth, and postcard-perfect landscapes.  But beneath the snow, a predator is hunting. In this episode, we deep dive into the case of Michel Peiry, the charismatic, well-dressed soldier known as "The Sadist of Romont," who weaponized Swiss...

The monsters aren't always hiding in the shadows... sometimes they are standing right next to you under the neon lights. ​In the mid-1990s, the underground clubs of Hillbrow, Johannesburg, served as a rare sanctuary for the LGBTQ+ community.  But for Samuel Jacques Coetzee and John Frank Brown, that vibrant sanctuary was a hunting ground. ​This week on Homocidal Tendency , Matt breaks down a...

Need a breather from the blood and guts? After a few incredibly heavy weeks, Homocidal Tendency is taking a detour from our usual grisly crime scenes to dive into a completely different kind of underworld.  This week, we travel back to the gritty, neon-lit streets of early 90s New York City to explore the desperate, brilliant, and entirely analog crimes of Lee Israel. ​Once a New York Times best-s...

In March 2007, a land surveyor pushing through the thick palmetto scrub off Arcadia Street in Fort Myers made a chilling discovery a sun-bleached human skull. By the time the cadaver dogs and forensic anthropologists finished their work, the brush had yielded the skeletal remains of eight different men. ​In this special bonus companion episode of Homocidal Tendency , we return to the lethal Florid...

​In the mid-1990s, the suffocating palmetto scrub of Southwest Florida hid a terrifying secret. A calculated predator was cruising the highways, cheap motels, and day-labor spots, luring transient and marginalized men into the woods with the promise of quick cash for a "nude bondage photoshoot." But once the ropes were pulled tight against the rough bark of the trees, the trap snapped sh...